Curiosity (song)

"Curiosity" is a song recorded by Canadian singer Carly Rae Jepsen for her EP Curiosity (2012). It was released as the second single from the EP on May 1, 2012, through 604 Records. Produced and co-written by Ryan Stewart, "Curiosity" is an upbeat pop track that is influenced by dance and synthpop. Lyrically, the track alludes to a girl who is poorly treated by a bad boy, and begs for more of his love. It received generally positive reviews from contemporary critics, who deemed it similar to Jepsen's previous single, "Call Me Maybe". Following its release, the track reached number 18 on the Canadian Hot 100. A new version of the track was included on her international debut album Kiss.

"Curiosity"
Single by Carly Rae Jepsen
from the EP Curiosity
ReleasedMay 1, 2012
RecordedWinecellar Studios, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Genre
Length3:26
Label604
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Ryan Stewart
Carly Rae Jepsen singles chronology
"Call Me Maybe"
(2011)		 "Curiosity"
(2012)		 "Good Time"
(2012)

Background and release

Jepsen's first single, "Call Me Maybe", was released only in Canada on September 20, 2011.[3] In January 2012, pop singers Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez were in the country and heard the track on the mainstream radio. After they tweeted about it on their personal profiles, Jepsen instantly gained international attention, and got signed by Scooter Braun to his Schoolboy Records.[4] Braun revealed that Bieber has "never jumped out and promoted an artist like this before. He sends me different YouTube videos of unsigned artists that he'd like to work with, but never someone who already had a song out and is on the radio."[5] Worldwide distribution of the single was done through Interscope Records.[6] "Call Me Maybe" attained worldwide success, reaching number one in Australia, Canada, United States, Finland, Ireland, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom, while peaking inside the top ten in Belgium, Netherlands and Norway.[7][8] Following the surprising performance of the single,[9] Jepsen's second studio effort, Curiosity, was released on February 14, 2012 in Canada only, where it debuted and peaked at number six.[10] The title track was written by Jepsen, while song production and additional writing was done by Ryan Stewart.[11] It was released as the second single from the EP on May 1, 2012.[12]

Composition and reception

The song features dance beats and catchy hooks.[1] In the song, Jepsen sings about being poorly treated by a bad boy, and begs for more of his love, opening the song with the lines, "Break a bone, got me on my knees / You break my heart, just to watch it bleed".[13] "Curiosity" received generally positive reviews from contemporary critics. Before its release as a single, Ben Norman of About.com noted that the track was "the obvious follow up to 'Call Me Maybe' although stresses the beats a little more than I'd personally like."[1] Jon O'Brien of Allmusic said that both "Curiosity" and "Picture" are "convincing forays into infectious synth pop,"[2] while Fiona Eadie of Cadence Canada said that the song is "still amazingly upbeat."[13] Jen Appel of idobi Radio considered "Curiosity" similar to "Call Me Maybe", adding that the song "brings the same lighthearted vibe while touching on a more personal note. This song encompasses the feelings of a girl fighting to keep her relationship alive while struggling with the ever-present curiosity of 'what ifs'."[14]

Promotion
Jepsen performing "Curiosity" during Believe Tour.

Music video

Jepsen shot a video for the song on June 5, 2012 with director Colin Minihan.[15] The music video was not released, and leaked on November 25, 2012.[15] According to the description of the leak, "this video was shelved because it was "too sexy" for her new tween demographic."[15] The video starts with Jepsen on a taxi cab with rainy weather. She writes a text message that reads, "Where are you? I'm outside". She then leaves the cab, and runs into an unknown house. She knocks at the door, but with no answer, she looks under the carpet under her feet and find a key, with which she enters the house to find a long hallway full of doors and an image of herself at the end, now with different clothes. Jepsen keeps opening different doors, only to find other hallways. The scene then cuts to a bedroom where she meets her love interest, and they make love together. Back to the hallway, Jepsen opens another door where she sees a video of her wedding with the same guy. It cuts again to the bedroom, when it's revealed that there is another woman in the bedroom who stares at them both with a sadness expression on her face. Then we see Jepsen and the love interest fighting outside of the house in the middle of rain, only to find out that he had actually cheated on her with that other woman and she had discovered at that moment. She runs outside of the house and goes back to the cab.

Live performances

On March 26, 2012, Jepsen visited WBBM-FM's Morning Show and performed two tracks of her EP, "Call Me Maybe" and "Curiosity".[16] In the last week of January 2013, the singer filmed an acoustic performance of the song in Tokyo exclusively for Billboard.[17]

Track listing
  • Digital download[12]
  1. "Curiosity" – 3:26

Charts and certifications

Charts

Following its release, "Curiosity" reached the position of 18 on the Canadian Hot 100.[18] The song is her second top 20 hit on chart.

Chart (2012) Peak
position
Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[19] 18
Canada AC (Billboard)[20] 11
Canada CHR/Top 40 (Billboard)[21] 14
Canada Hot AC (Billboard)[22] 6
South Korea International Singles (Gaon)[23] 10

Year-end charts
Chart (2012) Peak
position
Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[24] 55

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[25] Gold 40,000*

* Sales figures based on certification alone.

Release history
Region Date Format Label
Canada[12] May 1, 2012 Digital download 604 Records

References
  1. Norman, Ben (February 14, 2012). "Carly Rae Jepsen - 'Curiosity EP' Review". About.com. Rovi Corporation. Archived from the original on January 16, 2013. Retrieved March 31, 2012.
  2. O'Brien, Jon (February 14, 2012). "Curiosity - Carly Rae Jepsen". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved March 31, 2012.
  3. "Call Me Maybe - Single by Carly Rae Jepsen". iTunes Store. Apple Inc. September 20, 2011. Retrieved March 30, 2012.
  4. Kurchak, Sarah (March 12, 2012). "Carly Rae Jepsen, 'Call Me Maybe': Singer Reveals How Justin Bieber's Tweet Sent Her Into Pop Stratosphere". AOL Radio. Retrieved March 30, 2012.
  5. Lau, Melody (March 12, 2012). "Justin Bieber Gives Singer Carly Rae Jepsen a Boost". Rolling Stone. Jann Wenner. Retrieved March 30, 2012.
  6. "Carly Rae Jepsen Signs to Schoolboy Records/Interscope, Run by Scooter Braun and Justin Bieber". PR Newswire. February 29, 2012. Retrieved March 30, 2012.
  7. "Carly Rae Jepsen – New Zealand Charts". charts.nz/ Hung Medien.
  8. "Call Me Maybe - Carly Rae Jepsen". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved March 30, 2012.
  9. Benjamin, Jeff (March 26, 2012). "Carly Rae Jepsen: Meet Justin Bieber's Favorite New Artist". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved March 30, 2012.
  10. "Canadian Albums Chart - Week of March 3, 2012". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. March 3, 2012. Retrieved March 31, 2012.
  11. Curiosity liner notes. 604 Records (2012)
  12. "Curiosity - Single by Carly Rae Jepsen". iTunes Store. Apple Inc. May 1, 2011. Retrieved May 5, 2012.
  13. Eadie, Fiona (March 7, 2012). "Carly Rae Jepsen – Curiosity". Cadence Canada. Archived from the original on December 6, 2012. Retrieved March 31, 2012.
  14. Appel, Jen (March 14, 2012). "Carly Rae Jepsen – Curiosity: Album Review". idobi Radio. Retrieved March 31, 2012.
  15. "Carly Rae Jepsen - Curiosity - Official Music Video (Unreleased)". YouTube. November 25, 2012. Archived from the original on April 9, 2018. Retrieved November 25, 2012.
  16. "Carly Rae Jepsen Performs "Call Me Maybe" & "Curiosity" Live At The B96 Studios In Chicago". WBBM-FM. CBS. March 26, 2012. Retrieved March 30, 2012.
  17. "Carly Rae Jepsen Strips Down 'Curiosity': Exclusive Video Performance". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. February 6, 2013. Retrieved February 8, 2013.
  18. "Carly Rae Jepsen Chart History - Canadian Hot 100". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved May 5, 2012.
  19. "Carly Rae Jepsen Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved May 17, 2012.
  20. "Carly Rae Jepsen Chart History (Canada AC)". Billboard. Retrieved February 5, 2018.
  21. "Carly Rae Jepsen Chart History (Canada CHR/Top 40)". Billboard. Retrieved February 5, 2018.
  22. "Carly Rae Jepsen Chart History (Canada Hot AC)". Billboard. Retrieved February 5, 2018.
  23. "South Korea Gaon International Chart (Week: September 16, 2012 to September 22, 2012)". Gaon Chart. December 15, 2012. Archived from the original on December 19, 2012. Retrieved December 21, 2012.
  24. "Canadian Hot 100 – Year End 2012". Billboard. Retrieved August 14, 2019.
  25. "Canadian single certifications – Carly Rae Jepsen – Curiosity". Music Canada. Retrieved August 31, 2012.
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